♪ this morning, a new era begins. >> pope and excitement for the new pope, francis, from the new world with weighty challenges ahead. >> a man known for his humility and dedication to the poor already bringing his humble ways to the vatican's hallowed halls. >> we toasted him and then he toasted us and he simply said, may god forgive you. >> this morning, complete coverage from rome. ♪ good thursday morning, everybody. what a morning it is. truly a new day for the catholic church, the cardinals chose a pope that signals change at the

vatican. >> and the response in st. peter's square and around the world shows that change is very welcome. abc's marci gonzalez joins us from rome where the sell brakes go on. good morning, marci. >> reporter: good morning rob and diana. an amazing night. pope francis is starting his first full day as the leader of the roman catholic church. >> habemus papam. >> reporter: with those words history was made. pope francis becoming the first pontiff ever from latin america. echoing the roar of the more than 100,000 people in st. peter's square last night, the overwhelming enthusiasm from his home in argentina. [ speaking a foreign language ] >> translator: i always said it would be one of the best popes we ever had and thank god he is from argentina. >> reporter: there they know him

as cardinal jorge bergoglio, the humble man known for ministering to the poor. >> taken the name of st. francis of assisi which shows he wants to show the face of the poor. >> reporter: at 76 years old considered a black horse candidate his is not the face anyone expected to see last night. yet, following the white smoke and anticipation, this newly named pope emerged and prayed. [ speaking a foreign language ] welcomed by the faithful with open arms. and pope francis will reportedly meet with his predecessor pope benedict later today, the inaugural mass for the new pontiff will be held on tuesday. rob and diana? >> and, marci, you were there last night, the incredible moment, the first time we saw him step out on to the legendary balcony, what was that reaction like in the huge crowd? >> reporter: it was very

emotional. i think a lot of people were very surprised that -- the square was absolutely packed. more than 100,000 people and once they started seeing the smoke people literally just ran down the street to be a part of this and to witness history. >> now, marci, we've heard a lot about how he lived and where he lived in argentina. by all accounts lives as a poor man. has he been able to move right into his papal apartments which i assume will be completely different from his living quarters now? >> reporter: actually, no, he is still staying in the santa marta where he and the other cardinals stayed during the conclave because the papal apartment is still under renovation and still could be a few more weeks before he's able to move in. >> all right, marci working hard for us for many, many hours. thanks for the latest report. abc's marci gonzalez live once again from rome. the world is really just now starting to get to know this man, pope francis. the word humble being used to

describe him. francis is known for his work in the slums of buenos aires and said to consider social outreach as the essential business of the church. >> famous for taking the bus or riding his bicycle to the office. before the vatican he lived in a small apartment where he cooked his own food and by the way he only has one lung having lost the other to an infection as a teenager. >> for all of his progressiveness francis is very much a conservative. he staunchly opposed gay marriage and adoptions by gay couples. >> those positions have put him at odds with the current president. >> reaction to francis' elevation is coming in from around the globe and devin dwyer sampled some of it. good morning. >> reporter: good morning, that's right. catholics all around the globe are really praising the pick of pope francis as a turning point in a church in turmoil. from rome to buenos aires, and

across the u.s. an eruption of emotion for the first latin-american pope. >> when when they said from argentina, i was like, oh, my god, it's incredible. >> so overwhelmed. this is so good not only for latin america but for the whole world. it's like a new era. >> reporter: the election of jorge bergoglio as pope francis stunned his native argentina where catholics who know him say he's a living saint. last year he washed the feet of a prisoner, this woman said. in the u.s., francis' reputation as a holy and humble leader is seen as reinnovating the church's mission. >> good that he's supporting not only people from his nation but also a lot of poor people from around the world. >> reporter: his heritage is already building excitement among american latinos. >> when i heard he was like -- he spoke spanish, he was like from latin, i feel so great. >> reporter: a new pope stirring

a new hope for ancient church. >> i know it's going to encourage the children. >> reporter: now, vice president joe biden, the first catholic american vice president, will lead the u.s. delegation to rome next week for the pope's installation mass. rob and diana. >> all right, devin dwyer live for us in washington, thank you. pope francis has a busy first few days of his pontificate. he's meeting with pope benedict and noon eastern celebrate mass with all the cardinals. >> and schedule doesn't stop there. on sunday he will make an appearance with visitors gathered in st. peter's square and it's there in the square he will be formally installed for a mass set for tuesday. >> more on rome and more insight about what was it was like inside the conclave coming up on "good morning america." time now for a look at weather from across the country. snow showers in northern new

england with spring now just thankfully one week away. thank you. cooler air stretches all the way down to florida and also light snow in the upper midwest around the twin city, milwaukee and the windy city. late day showers from seattle to portland and some snow? the cascades. >> 70 for much of the rockies, ½v 90 of the season in n to detroit, 40s in the northeast. come on, spring. come on. warm up already. >> we're waiting for you. coming up, some big menu changes at the golden arches. plus new backlash and outrage over the plan to allow pocket knives on airplanes. >> we return to rome for insight

♪

looking live at the vatican, a big difference there in st. peter's square compared to last night when pope francis, of course, was introduced to the world. and we will have more from rome coming up in just a moment but there is other news to report including a deadly standoff in central new york. >> police say this man, kurt meyers, killed two men in a barber shop then two more at an auto service station. neighbors describe this man as a loner and police believe they do have him cornered in an abandoned building and don't plan to move on him until daylight. >> a barge fire was still moldering in a louisiana bayou overnight more than 24 hours after it first erupted starting with a tugboat pushing a barge hit i natural pipeline. no oil spilled. tsa chief john 'tis stolle travels to capitol hill to defend his controversial decision to allow small knives on passenger airplanes.

outraged flight attendants met with him yesterday. several airlines have joined in their protest. he says he will not be swayed because he says bombs made of liquids or chemicals are the real danger here and tsa agents have to focus on that. turning now to money, both the dow and the dollar are heading higher. the market once again opens in new territory this morning after gaining 5 points yesterday. it was the ninth consecutive positive session. the u.s. dollar also doing well at or near its highest level in years. both are getting boosts from all the recent good economic reports. and breakfast at mcdonald's is getting a little healthier believe it or not. they launch their egg white mcmuffin sandwich in about a month, the bun made with whole grains as well and clocks in at 250 calories, the regular one was 300. good news for those of us on the overnight shift or the early eaters. >> live on mcdonald's. >> not bad. i still like the fries. >> there you go.

well, next on this thursday morning, a high-profile hacking scheme/scandal is spreading. more celebrities and politicians exposed. private financial information posted online. francis isn't just the pope, he's also the bishop of rome. so how are italians reacting this morning to a new world pope? g♪ add a pop of color to your everyday look. new almay intense i-color bold nudes. a neutral palette with a pop of color that makes my green eyes stand out. and there's one for every eye color.

i use bounce outdoor fresh sheets because they're just that much fresher and they help keep static off in the cold so my clothes will never embarrass me. mommy, i dressed the snowman! how do you get your bounce? less static year-round. now a look at your morning road conditions at slick spots in parts and now a look at your morning road conditions on this thursday. slick spots in parts of northern new england. snow making for a slippery ride in the upper midwest from chicago to northern minnesota and some wet roads later on in the pacific northwest. and if you're flying today, it should be easy going. we have no major airport delays to report. ♪ and now back to the morning's top story, the historic election of a new pope. at this hour, st. peter's square is relatively quiet after that jubilant celebration last night. >> the choice of pope francis

clearly signals change, but how far that change will go is still unknown. earlier this morning, we talked to bill blakemore, who covered three popes as abc news rome chief -- bureau chief. >> what was your first reaction yesterday when you heard the big news? >> there were so many firsts with this pope. he is the first from the new world, the first from latin america, the first from the global south, the first jesuit, which is a big deal, and even more, the first to take the name of francis after francis of assisi and giving the sense of an intention to really do something new. the big question is whether that other aspect of st. francis of assisi, the patron saint of the environment, famous for talking to the animals, preaching to the birds, and, of course, some people are going to say those two seagulls that stood on the chimney before may have been a sign that st. francis was coming up in a way. we don't know exactly whether as

pope this new pope will also take that aspect of st. francis into his new pontificate. >> what we've heard about him kind of runs the gamut. we've heard progressive, moderate, conservative, orthodox. what do we know about his personality and what he is going to bring to the church as a game changer? >> he certainly has the common touch. it was remarkable when he went out on the balcony how he immediately connected with the crowd. he got interactive right away. he brought up a reason right away to say the lord's prayer, the ave maria, so it was immediately back and forth together and asked them to pray for him. his voice is very soft and calm and humble sounding. a remarkable way of connecting to the crowd. so it seems he will have a big popular appeal that way. the question we don't know is whether he will be able to come in because he's a vatican outsider. he spent almost his entire career in argentina, whether he'll be able to come in and take over control of that ancient bureaucracy, which goes all the way back to the roman empire, some of the same terms, the curia

the same term as they used in the roman empire. that tradition-bound vatican bureaucracy, will he be able to handle them in a way to get a new kind of control so that they can handle some of their worst crisis such as, for example, the terrible way they've not been able to handle the child abuse crisis. >> thank you, bill. and on top of the sex abuse scandal, they have a shortage of priests they're dealing with. they have some operational issues and financial issues just like every leader they walk into a lot. the plate is full. >> but this is the one thing on this pope's plate that everybody is expected that he will take care of is the child abuse sex scandal. i think everything else can fall by the wayside, and we will be okay as a catholic nation. if he does not take care of the sex scandal, then i believe the catholics of the world will have a problem. >> making sure some people are brought to justice, making sure the victims are compensated and, of course, in a lighter note, the pr angle of it. some people lost their faith,

and he has a lot of i guess repair work to do in that regard but can't ignore demographically the significance of his selection and the shift of catholic population southward and not northward. so it really does speak to a new world order demographically right now. >> that's right. 40% of all catholics are latin-american. >> indeed, and pope francis faced his toughest audience in the people of rome but he won them over right from the start. them over right from the start. the former cardinal bergoglio may be from 7,000 miles away, but he is the son of an italian immigrant and speaks the language very well, but he sealed the deet in the choice of his name, because st. francis of assini -- i'm sorry -- of assisi is the patron saint of italy. still a lot pore ahead coming up and, of course, there is still a lot more ahead coming up later today on "good morning america" in just a few hours. well, also making news, more famous faces are popping up on this website at the center of that shocking scandal. new jersey governor chris christie and bill gates are the latest victims. the site reveals what appears to be their social security numbers and credit reports. an fbi investigation got under way this week when the first lady, vice president and a long list of other celebrities were

targeted. a pennsylvania mom is facing assault charges after forcing her 12-year-old daughter into a fistfight with another girl. michele davenport is seen here on cell phone video egging her daughter on, telling her to punch the girl in her face. her daughter herself ended up with a bloody nose and that girl suffered a concussion. davenport claims she was bullied by that other girl. now we want to check out this video, which is going viral. it's an ad for pepsi max featuring nascar driver jeff gordon in disguise as a car buyer. >> gordon takes an unsuspecting salesman on a test drive he'll never forget. hidden cameras catch the whole ride as steve the salesman gets more and more freaked out. and when it ends, steve jumps out threatening to call police. only then does gordon blow his own cover, and at that point, yeah, all's forgiven. can't blame him for panicking, though. are you kidding me? >> oh, my goodness. all right, coming up next in

"the pulse," and the bird that caused a frenzy at the vatican yesterday. >> some reading into some symbolism there, yeah. plus, what the late night comics had to say about the new pope. tends to stay at rest... while a body in motion tends to stay in motion. staying active can actually ease arthritis symptoms. but if you have arthritis, staying active can be difficult. prescription celebrex can help relieve arthritis pain so your body can stay in motion. because just one 200mg celebrex a day can provide 24 hour relief for many with arthritis pain and inflammation. plus, in clinical studies, celebrex is proven to improve daily physical function so moving is easier. celebrex can be taken with or without food. and it's not a narcotic. you and your doctor should balance the benefits with the risks. all prescription nsaids, like celebrex, ibuprofen, naproxen and meloxicam have the same cardiovascular warning. they all may increase the chance of heart attack or stroke, which can lead to death. this chance increases if you have heart disease or risk factors such as high blood pressure

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♪ welcome back, everybody. we offer a pope-inspired "pulse" starting at the vatican. a seagull perched on the chimney of the sistine chapel was a real star before that white smoke started billowing. >> and quickly had a couple of twitter fans. plenty pointed out in the church lilt ra tur the holy spirit is represented by a bird but not a seagull. >> and, of course, st. francis concerned about the environment, some people ran into that. >> the holy spirit was with them. also something of a side

show, oh, in rome. the presence of dennis rodman there with his glorious fluorescent flowers on his coat. >> digs someone who needs jesus. take a look at that. fresh off his trip to north korea. >> of course. >> of course, ambassador to the word. rodman said he was there to lobby for a black pope. well done. in reality his visit was all part of the publicity for an irish bookmaker which was taking bets on who the next pope would be. glad dennis was there for a noble cause promoting gambling on the pontiff. that's noble. >> are we done with that story yet? can i show my face of journalism again. >> moving on from -- thank you, worm. much like a presidential election the selection of the new pope was great material for the late night comics. >> that's right and they did not let this opportunity pass them by. take a listen. >> you could tell he was south american because when they announced it they were like we have a pope!

>> congratulations, new pope. now we must all remember that the last pope, pope benedict, will now be known as pope classic. >> we have a new pope. the vatican has chosen the first ever argentinean pope so once again a bunch of whole white guys got a hispanic to do a job they didn't want to do. >> oh. >> the racial undertones. >> conan, oh, taking a nice swipe. but the papal comedy wasn't just on tv. comedians were tweeting out there, as well. oh, yeah. pineapple express star seth rogen tweeting there's also white smoke coming out of my office and nobody seems that excited about it. >> bheeden writer albert brooks got a little political tweeting the pope came on the balcony, saw his shadow and realized there were six more centuries of scandals. thank you for that, mr. brooks. >> in light of all yesterday's seriousness and pageantry a little humor is grateful.

your local news coming up. >> for everyone else we'll be right back. smoke? nah, i'm good. ♪ [ male announcer ] every time you say no to a cigarette, you celebrate a little win. nicoderm cq, the patch with time release smart control technology. quit one day at a time with nicoderm cq.

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>> live from the kgo-tv broadcast center this is abc7 news. >> thursday morning at 4:28. >> i am eric thomas. how is the thursday weather? mike? >> good morning, everyone. we start with live doppler 7 hd. keep the umbrellas away. it is dry. we will look at the visibility. sfo has five miles visibility, the lower ones outside of the coast. there is patchy fog but it is patchy compared to yesterday. there is not so much fog. so it will fade quicker but we will have thicker, high clouds. that will dim the sunshine.

it will not be quite as warm as yesterday, but, still, pleasant around the bay. upper 50's to low 60's at the coast, warmer elsewhere. >> the fog is patchy and thick across the golden gate bridge. from the waldo, it is clear and then, boom, you hit it. be cautious. it is patchy fog. there is limited visibility on the golden gate bridge. to vallejo, the ramp from eastbound 37 to westbound 80 is under construction. it will be closed until 5:00 this morning. southbound 101, you will find intermittent lane closings, mostly the left lane to the waldo. >> breaking news from overnight, a 4.6 earthquake struck the north bay this morning while you slept. it happened at 2:09 a.m., three miles southwest of cobb between chairlake and mt. st. helena